White Sox fans turned a Cubs-White Sox game at Rate Field into a chance to boo Green Bay on Saturday, May 16, chanting “Green Bay sucks” during a stoppage while home plate umpire Brian O'Nora was being tended to after a foul ball struck him in the neck area. O'Nora later left the field and the game with concussion-like symptoms.
The chant rolled through the home ballpark at the bottom of the fourth inning, and one of the broadcast teams met it with sarcasm, saying, “While we have a moment here at Rate Field fans are able to join in unison and tell everybody how much they love Green Bay.” The moment came in a game the White Sox won 8-3 to even the series between the Chicago rivals.
It was not the first time a Chicago crowd has used baseball to aim at the Packers. Two years ago, then-Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams was at the Old Crow Smokehouse in Wrigleyville when the same “Green Bay sucks” chant rang through the restaurant. Last offseason, Williams told a stage at Fanatics Fest in New York that Packers fans “suck,” a line that fit neatly into a city where dislike of Green Bay crosses sports lines and shows up anywhere fans gather.
Saturday’s scene had a sharper edge because it unfolded while O'Nora was being treated after the foul-ball injury. That made the chant feel less like routine rivalry theater and more like Chicago sports noise spilling into a moment of concern on the field. The White Sox had the scoreboard edge by the time the dust settled, and the 8-3 result gave them a split in the series that had the crowd leaving with a win and a familiar enemy in mind.
The football calendar gives those fans two more dates to circle. The Bears and Packers are scheduled to meet in Week 5 on Sunday, Oct. 11, at Lambeau Field in 2026, then again in Week 16 on Christmas Day, Friday, Dec. 25, at Soldier Field. If Saturday was any guide, the rivalry will not need much help finding a soundtrack in Chicago.
